Germany celebrates first World Cup victory against a Finnish selection in 25 years / Finns only equalize shortly before the end of regular time / Markus Eisenschmid scores his first World Cup goal in extra time for the surprise victory / On Tuesday against the NHL star ensemble from Canada
An outstanding performance by the German national ice hockey team against the two-time world champion and co-favorite from Finland was rewarded at the 2018 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. National coach Marco Sturm's team won the game 3:2 (0:1, 2:0, 0:1, 1:0) and thus celebrated a surprise win against the favorites.
Sturm surprisingly chose Mathias Niederberger over Niklas Treutle. The Düsseldorf goalkeeper was the last squad player to be licensed just the day before. This meant that after Niklas Treutle, Jonas Müller, Markus Eisenschmid, Manuel Wiederer, Bernhard Ebner, Marc Michaelis and Sebastian Uvira, the eighth German player celebrated his World Cup debut during the current tournament.
The 25-year-old goalkeeper was caught off guard right from the start. Eeli Tolvanen's low shot went into the net to make it 0-1, and Niederberger was powerless. However, he was able to prove his class several times as the game progressed. The German team only had two shots on goal after the first period, but these were extremely dangerous. Both Daniel Pietta and Leon Draisaitl narrowly missed.
An already fast game picked up speed again in the second half. Frederik Tiffels was quickest to shoot after a shot from the blue line and made it 1-1 from the turn. Finland got angrier, but Niederberger also got better at the same time. Marco Sturm's team presented itself perfectly positioned, particularly in terms of tactics and combat. That should be rewarded: Björn Krupp's shot went past everyone and into the net. Germany had turned the game around.
As expected, the Finns came out of the locker room storming in the final half. But Germany resisted. Time passed and it looked like a surprise. Until exceptional talent Sebastian Aho made it 2-2 with the advantage around two minutes before the end. In extra time, however, Markus Eisenschmid still made Germany's success perfect: Dominik Kahun served his teammate in an exemplary manner after two minutes - he secured it DEB-Selection secured their first World Cup success against Finland in 25 years with his goal.
Tomorrow, Monday, there will be a training session in the afternoon before the national team faces the star-studded Team Canada, a team full of NHL stars, in the last World Cup game on Tuesday (16.15:1 p.m., live on SPORTXNUMX). This encounter is of course particularly exciting because of the first direct duel between Leon Draisaitl and superstar Connor McDavid. Oilers players Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Darnelle Nurse are also in the Maple Leafs squad.
National coach Marco Sturm: “German teams always have a hard time against Sweden and Finland. Of course we would rather take the win today. I wasn't happy with the first ten minutes, but after that we performed as a team, were very good defensively, did the little things right and grew closer together from minute to minute. I liked this style of ice hockey. I'm particularly happy for Mathias Niederberger, who last played in mid-April and has only been able to train since then. This victory was not only important for the team here, but also for the future.”
Mathias Niederberger, Düsseldorfer EG: “It was a great fight by the whole team! The boys blocked a lot of shots. I am of course pleased that we were rewarded for this fight and that we achieved this victory at my World Cup debut.”
Gates: 0:1 Eeli Tolvanen (2:26), 1:1 Frederik Tiffels (25:26), 2:1 Björn Krupp (38:48), 2:2 Sebastian Aho (57:54), 3:2 Markus Eisenschmid ( 62:00)
Germany: Niederberger (Pielmeier) – Y. Seidenberg, M. Müller; Eisenschmid, Hager, Plachta – Holzer, D. Seidenberg; Draisaitl, Kahun, Ehliz – J. Müller, Krupp; Michaelis, Tiffels, Noebels – Mebus; Höfflin, Pietta, Krämmer; Uvira.
Viewers: 5.077
You can find detailed statistics about the game HERE.